With 15 Grade One passes, Anuradha Dev shares the top spot at the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations, and she did it without any extra lessons.
Dev, in an interview with Stabroek News, said that she was shocked after she heard the news about her results. She said that a friend had called to congratulate on her results but she had no idea what the friend was talking about. Dev said that she never expected to perform badly at examinations but said that she also never expected to top the country.
When asked who she would like to thank for aiding her through exams, Dev said that she had to thank God firstly and her family. She said that her family was her support system through it all, and she singled out her father, Ravi Dev, who she said was really there for her. Dev said that her father always explained concepts that she didn’t understand and especially tricky topics. Dev said that he was the reason why she never went to any extra lessons.
Dev, who is also a big cricket fan, said that she tried not to stress herself out with examinations and she used the weekends to relax, read and watch the games. She is also an avid reader and especially enjoys Sci-fi books. But she noted that when it was coming down to “crunch” time, she read fewer novels, since she usually gets very into them and they could have been a distraction for her.
Anuradha Dev says that her short-term plan is to continue on at Queen’s College, where she will be doing her CAPE examinations. She says that she is striving for a career in psychiatry because she is very interested in the field of mental health, and particularly in tackling the rates of suicide. Dev wants to work to help make a change.
When asked what she thought about her friends’ results, Anuradha said that she was proud of her schoolmates and is happy that they have all done well.
